Journey to the West
by mellra
Summary: Naruto, born in Xing, travels to Amestris in search of the Philosophers Stone for his dear friend. However, dark secrets and rival travelers of Xing will get in his way. It's a good thing he'll meet a certain pair of brothers who will help him in his quest! Challenge story, Chimera!Naruto, Xing!Naruto, Alkahestry!Naruto


**Journey to the West**

 **AN:** Naruto, who was born in the FMA world, is a native of Xing but has his looks thanks to his father's side of the family originally from Amestris. His father is actually one of the leading experts in Alchahestry that he taught Naruto (like May knows). When Naruto was six, he was in a bad accident that nearly killed him. In order to save his life, Minato looked through hundreds of Alkahestry and Alchemy texts for a possible way to save him. Eventually, Minato used a Fennec Fox to make Naruto into a chimera in order to both strengthen his body and replace the damaged organs.  
Naruto would be like Kimblee's men in that he has a normal and chimera form (Google search Jason Fennec Fox for reference, first image) and has stronger senses and reflexes. Naturally, this makes Naruto somewhat an outcast since even regular Chimera aren't common in Xing. However, Naruto makes a friend in one of the daughters of the Emporer named Hinata Hyuuga. Their relationship is like Usopp and Kaya's from One Piece, as Hinata is often sick with an unknown disease that is making her go blind and Naruto does his best to make her feel better.  
When word gets out on the Emporer looking for a way to immortality and will give favor to whoever finds it, Naruto hears about the Philosophers Stone like Ling and May. Naruto leaves for Amestris to find the stone for two reasons; it would allow Hinata to gain her clan favor with the Emporer and he could use it himself to help cure Hinata. Naruto leaves a few months before Ling and May leave, and quickly finds himself in Amestris.  
On the way there, Naruto winds up on a train that gets hijacked by terrorists. There, Naruto meets two brothers; one a height sensitive blonde and the other an armored giant. The group work together to defeat the terrorists and Naruto learns that his newfound friends are the famous Alchemists, the Elric brothers. Finding out they have the same objective, Naruto decides to tag along with the brothers. Together, they uncover a plot affecting not only Amestris, but the entire world!

 **Disclaimer:** I own neither FMA or Naruto.

Now...where should I begin? My mom got me this journal so I could write about all of my adventures so she could read it later and, knowing her, she'd kill me if I didn't give as many details as possible. So how's about this; My name is Naruto Namikaze, 15 years old, birthday October 10th . Though I may not look it, my birthplace is actually the country of Xing. Most people would think that I'm from Amestris, what with my blonde hair and blue eyes. The truth is, one of my dad's parents (my grandma) was a native of Amestris, but moved to Xing after meeting my grandpa. My dad got most of his Amestrian features from her, and I got most of my features from him. Until recently though, I had yet to set foot on the land of my ancestors.

Despite my foreign appearance, I had a pretty happy childhood. My dad's one of the top Alkahestry researchers in the country and has many students, myself included. My mom, meanwhile, is one of the bodyguards for the current Emporer, and she's taught me all I know about Xingese martial arts. So yeah, both my parents are badasses and they passed it down to me. This all changed though when I was about five years old. I don't remember much about that day, all I remember was my family going out for a day of fun when suddenly my world exploded in pain, then darkness.

According to my parents, I'd wandered a bit ahead of them when this one vendor lost control of his cart at the top of the hill I was at the bottom of. I never saw what hit me, but the damage was pretty severe. My dad was able to fix up most of the damage by use of Alkahestry, but the problem was that the accident damaged quite a few of my internal organs, ones that my dad couldn't fix. My parents searched desperately for an organ donor, but when none were available my dad resorted to drastic measures. My dad had been studying the different forms of Alkahestry (or Alchemy as it is also called) over the world to expand his research when he came across a certain brand of Alchemy from Amestris that could possibly save my life. With few options, my dad performed the procedure.

It was a complete success, but there was a catch. The process used on me isn't widely known in Xing, and a lot of the people who lived by us weren't very comfortable with what had been done to me. I'd even heard some of them call me a demon when they thought I wasn't listening. I don't fault my parents for this, as I would have died otherwise, yet I did find it very hard to make friends afterwards since most parents didn't want their children being around me. That was, until I met her.

Hinata Hyuuga of the Hyuuga Clan is the sixteenth princess of Xing. Despite her royal upbringing, she is a gentle soul, seeing the beauty in everyone and everything. She even sought me out as a friend despite me being the 'demon brat.' Her mother is also a great person, encouraging our friendship instead of wanting us apart. We would play and laugh and just have a good time as kids our age do, and I was happy. Though like all good things, it didn't last. A couple years ago, Hinata was diagnosed with an unknown disease that was slowly causing her eyesight to deteriorate. And unlike with my condition, she couldn't be healed by regular alchemy as the disease in her would just cause any replacement eyes to deteriorate as well. She's nearly blind now, and despite her assurances I feel completely powerless to help her.

That was when fortune seemed to favor me! I learned through my mom that the Emperor's health had taken a downturn and he was offering the favor of any who found a source of immortality (or something close to it). This of course led to the scrambling of most of the princes and princesses of Xing who want a chance at the succession. It was through this my mom learned about something that could not only heal Hinata, but also possibly place her as the next ruler of Xing: the Philosophers Stone. A substance so powerful, it is said to break the normal boundaries of Alchemy and Alkahestry and could quite possibly heal any disease. If the Stone is as powerful as they say, I could use it to heal Hinata's eyes and she in turn can use the Stone to gain the Emperor's favor for her clan. The question was though, where to find such a mystical item?

According to my mom, at least two of the princes and princesses were going to look in Amestris, where rumor has it the Stone is located. Seeing as I had no other leads, I decided I'd start my search there. Grabbing the few essentials I needed and saying goodbye to both my parents and Hinata, I headed off on my quest. Thankfully, unlike the princes and princesses, I can travel fairly incognito to Amestris thanks to my looks and my lack of royal upbringing. Fortune also favors me as rumor has it, the other searchers of the Stone are going to be taking the long path through the desert, giving me a head start on them in the search. Just in case, I'm using my mother's maiden name of Uzumaki on my travel papers to avoid suspicion.

I arrived in Amestris about a week ago by train, and have been going from place to place ever since. My search so far has been fruitless, but I refuse to give up! Maybe I should find a local Alchemist for more clues? Anyway, I need to get a move on. My train is about to leave and it'll be a long trip since it's several stops on the way to the East. We'll pass through the Youswell Coal Mine area and then further into the heart of the country. Though I can't shake this feeling that something's seriously wrong with this place…

 **Scene Change**

A blonde haired youth yawned as he stretched his arms over his head. He would have looked like an average Amestrian citizen except for two things; his spiky, untamed hairstyle and the whisker shaped marks on both of his cheeks. He wore a faded orange jacket and black pants, as well as sandals on his feet. Naruto 'Uzumaki' Namikaze yawned again as he looked at the map he'd pulled out of his pocket.

"Okay, so after I check out the eastern area I'll move towards Central. Then, if I've found nothing there, I'll head north, then work my way down south. I've gotta hear about something by then!" he finished as he traced his future path with his finger.

So far, his trip to Amestris had been fairly uneventful. That, however, was about to change. A gunshot suddenly boomed out along the train, quickly followed by the sounds of people panicking. The passengers in his car were in the process of getting up to see what was going on when the door to the car burst open, two men in guns forcing their way through.

"Ladies and gentlemen, can I have your attention please!" one of the hijackers called out. "As of now, this train belongs to our group of friends, who are at this moment calling the nearest military base with our demands. Until our demands are met, you're going to have to enjoy our company a little longer. Go along with our plans," he cocked his rifle for extra emphasis, "and nobody gets hurt!"

Shakily, the men and women of the car got back to their seats and tried to make themselves as small a target as possible. Naruto, meanwhile, fingered his kunai knives hidden in the secret pockets of his jacket, contemplating his next move. Stretching out his senses, as well as reading the Dragon's Pulse (mentally trying to ignore the strange feeling he'd been having since arriving in this country), he attempted to get a grasp on the situation.

'There are...ten, no, twelve hijackers on board with even heartbeats. Each one has at least one gun on them with enough firepower to blow a man to shreds. And with nearly a hundred civilians on board, chances of me overpowering them by myself are...not good. I'm going to need a diversion if I want to make a move,' he decided.

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A TINY LITTLE SHRIMP?!" an irate voice exploded from further down the aisle.

Naruto barely had time to turn his head before he saw a boy either his age or a bit younger (hard to tell, given his size) beat the every loving hell out of one of the hijackers. The other hijacker started moving towards the boy and Naruto made to get up to offer the kid his assistance, when a huge suit of armor suddenly moved and grabbed the hijacker's gun, pointing it harmlessly towards the ceiling.

'Holy shit! There was actually a person inside that thing?! I just thought it was a piece of art or something!' Naruto thought as the armored man (or was it a boy? The voice sounded way too young and didn't fit the person's towering physique at all!) and kid easily dispatched and tied up the two criminals. Then, Naruto couldn't help but smile. 'Looks like I got some backup after all! And if what I saw that kid do to that one grunt's gun is Amestrian Alchemy, then I think I've found my Alchemist leads to boot!'

He then couldn't help but sweatdrop as the blonde haired alchemist tried to make a cool exit through the window of the train car to take on the rest of the hijackers, only to be nearly blown away by the wind pressure. '...Well, better them than nothing I guess,' he thought with a resigned sigh.

Walking up to the armored alchemist, he tapped him on his metal shoulder. "'Scuse me?" Naruto coughed.

Turning, the boy in a man's armor seemed slightly startled as he stammered, "Oh! Um, yes, can I help you?"

Naruto put on a reassuring grin as he pointed a thumb at himself and stated confidently, "Actually, I was going to ask if you and that other guy needed any assistance. After all, the more help you have, the less chance there is of one of the other passengers getting hurt, right?"

"I'm...not sure if that's how it works, but you really don't need to worry yourself sir, my big brother and I are used to handling these kinds of situations," the armor said.

Naruto waved the boy's concerns off, "Eh, it's no trouble on my part, I'd be happy to help. Besides, I was getting kind of bored just ridding trains everywhere. Breaking up a hostage situation seems like a great way to break the monotony! And none of that 'mister' stuff, okay big guy? My name's Naruto Uzumaki!" he finished holding out a fist which the armored boy hesitantly returned.

"I'm Alphonse Elric and the one who just went out the window is my big brother Edward. Are you sure you can handle yourself? I mean, these guys look pretty serious and this isn't a game."

Just then, the door to the car opened, revealing another one of the hijackers looking to see why his two cohorts haven't checked in. The man barely got through the door before Naruto vanished in a flash of motion. The armed gunman soon found himself on the floor, relieved of said gun, and with the blonde boy from Xing on his back, twisting his arms painfully behind him.

Naruto looked up at the gobsmacked Alphonse with a smirk and said with mirth, "I think I can handle it."  
Before Al could respond, the door opened again to show the previous gunman's partner. Seeing the imposing form of the younger Elric brother first, the man panicked and started blasting away at the boy with his gun, only to cry out in pain when the bullet ricocheted off the thick armor and struck him in the leg. Soon, both criminals were tied up next to the first pair and the two teens headed further into the train.

As they walked, Naruto used his sharp senses to 'see' what was going on with the elder Elric brother. It would appear that the teen was making it towards the front of the train, though he was experiencing some difficulty from the other gunmen. When they entered the next car, Naruto turned to Al and said, "So how'd you like to do this? After all, besides the grunts in the front of the train, these guys are all that's left so I'm betting they have hostages in case anyone tries to play hero."

Al seemed to smile with his glowing red eyes (seriously, how _does_ he do that?) and stated, "I wouldn't worry about that if I was you. Ed usually comes up with a plan around this time to take them all down at once. Just sit back and enjoy the show."

Not to convinced but agreeing anyway, Naruto stretched out his senses once again to find out what's happening. He felt the other people through the door, four hijackers and four hostages, and further up ahead there were two more criminals along with the drivers. Suddenly, the two in the front were taken down by a mix of Ed and the two drivers before Ed seemed to run into a spot of trouble with one of the other hijackers. There was a pulse of what Naruto assumed was Amestrian Alchemy (it didn't feel quite...right, to the traveler, but he assumed that was because of the difference in method and location), when there was the sound of something being transmuted in the next car. Naruto heard the alchemist give the remaining criminals a chance to surrender through a transmuted megaphone. Naturally, the hijackers refused, and the kid did something with his alchemy followed by the sound of rushing water after he told the hostages to take cover.

Alphonse casually walked up to the door of the car and pulled it back, causing two of the hijackers to come spilling out with a huge torrent of water! The men lay coughing on the floor while Al loomed ominously over them while clanging his gauntlets together. Figuring that the younger Elric brother had this covered, Naruto made his way into the next car. The area was soaked thanks to Ed hooking up the train's water supply to the car, causing it to flood. One of the hijackers, the leader if Naruto had to guess, was struggling to his feet when Ed literally dropped in through the roof of the car. With a bit of quick alchemy, Ed gave his right arm a blade. It was then Naruto noticed that the other blonde boy had a metal prosthetic arm. 'Automail', if he remembered correctly.

'Well that's innovative,' Naruto noted in approval of mixing the boy's alchemy with his own prosthetic. Way to make a handicap into a strength!

The leader raised his left arm, which also happened to be automail designed as a gun, to shoot at the kid who pulverized his plans. Ed, however, was too fast as he used his new blade to divert the aim of the other man's arm, firing harmlessly into the ceiling. Ed grinned cheekily, commenting that the man got a cheap model, before Al came up behind the man and gave him a strong punch to the back of his head. This caused the man to fly to the side, thus cutting his false arm in two thanks to the still present blade cutting into it.

"Wow," Naruto whistled as he strode into the room, "guess you guys didn't need my help after all!"

"Against these jokers? Please," Ed snorted before adopting a confused expression, "Uh, who are you again?"

Before Naruto could answer, a voice called out from the back of the car, "All right you damn brats! Playtime is over!"

The trio turned and tensed when the last hijacker was standing beside a group of people who were clearly hostages as well. Judging by their similar appearance, they were probably a family. And the desperate criminal had one of the young children restrained with one arm while the other held a gun to the kid's head!

"On your knees and surrender! Otherwise this kid's gonna have another hole in his head!" the man bellowed. "You so much as twitch and-"

That's as far as the man got before a kunai knife struck the man in the hand holding the gun, causing him to cry out in pain and drop his weapon, his hostage breaking free and running to his family. The Elrics turned to see Naruto with his right hand outstretched, his left holding a handful of kunai. With the ease of a practiced veteran, Naruto threw his remaining knives in quick succession, half landing on the floor at his feet while the other half landed in front of the recovering hijacker in neat circles. Naruto then slammed his hands down on the circle by him, and identical transmutation array formed in both circles. Before the criminal could react, a fist made of metal was transmuted from the train car and gave the man a powerful uppercut, knocking him out cold.

The Elrics could only blink in surprise before turning back to Naruto who grinned and said, "Well...looks like I was useful after all!"

 **Scene Break**

After the train arrived at their destination, all the hijackers were apprehended and the former hostages were free to go. There was a small incident when the leader of the hijackers used a concealed knife in his automail to try and escape, but he was taken down by Edward's superior; Colonel Roy Mustang, the Flame Alchemist. It was then that Naruto discovered that the elder of the two brothers was actually a State Alchemist, despite being the same age as him. Ed and Al briefly met with the Colonel (Naruto got the distinct impression that Ed didn't like the man...at all), and afterwards the two met up with Naruto who stuck around, saying he wanted to talk to the two. After they met up, Naruto offered to buy the two a meal in thanks for the help, which Ed easily agreed to. The three went to a nice little cafe a few blocks from the train station and while Ed and Naruto ordered decent sized meals, Al surprisingly enough didn't eat a thing. When asked about it, Al said he wasn't hungry at the moment, though Naruto thought he detected a hint of hesitation in the younger boy's voice but shrugged it off for now.

Al broke the silence first after the meal, "Those were some pretty cool moves you had. Where did you learn them? And how were you able to use alchemy from a distance like that?"

Naruto grinned, "Those were Xingese martial arts! I learned them from my mom. I also know a bit of Xingese Alkahestry from my dad, which allowed me to use long range alchemy. I take it you two are pretty skilled alchemists yourselves, being part of the military and all, right?"

Edward seemed to puff himself up a little as he boasted, "Well I don't mean to brag but me and Al are pretty famous in Amestris." he then adopted a confused look and said, "So wait, you're from Xing? No offense, but you look like you're from this country."

Naruto gave a chuckle and stated, "Well, when I first saw you I wouldn't have thought you were part of this country's military because of how s-" Naruto paused there as he gained a feeling of existential dread coming from a dark aura that seemed to surround Edward and he quickly checked his words, "I mean...young...you look. So appearances are deceiving I guess. And to be fair, while I am from Xing, some of my ancestors are from Amestris and most of their looks got passed down to me."

"So why are you all the way out here? Business or pleasure?" Al piped up.

The blonde teen from Xing gave a sigh at that as he figured this question was coming up. "While I'd love to say I'm just here to see the land of my ancestors and study the differences in culture and alchemy, the truth is I'm here looking for something." He then brightened up as he added, "I was actually hoping to talk to you about that, seeing as you're both famous alchemists and from around here and all. I'm looking for the Philosophers Stone!"

There was no denying it this time. Naruto saw both teens tense slightly before relaxing as Ed asked, "Why would you look for the Stone, especially here?"

Naruto's face gained a fox like smirk as he said, "Well, I'll tell you why I'm after the Stone...if you tell me why you're after it."

In an instant, both brothers were on their feet in a defensive position. Naruto meanwhile just calmly raised his hands in surrender as he said, "Easy, easy. No need to get so bent out of shape!"

"How do you know we're looking for the Stone? Do you know where it is?!" Ed questioned heatedly.

The whiskered alchemist shrugged as he lowered his hands. "If I knew where it was, would I ask you that? As for how I knew you guys were looking for the Stone...I didn't I just read your body language when I mentioned the Stone and the way you tensed suggested you knew something about it. I took a guess at what your intentions regarding the Stone were, and your reaction just now proved my theory."

Ed seemed to calm down slightly at that, though he did have a distrustful look on his face and a slight blush on his cheeks for getting so easily duped. If armor could blush, Naruto was sure Al was doing the same. "Why do you want the Stone?" Al asked as the two brothers settled down.

Naruto paused then proposed, "Tell you what, you answer my questions and I'll answer yours. Equivalent Exchange, right?"

The brothers shared a glance before huddling and whispering among each other for a minute before turning back to the waiting blonde. "Deal," Ed said, "But we do this in a more private setting. I'd rather some of this stuff not get out to the public (1)."

Naruto nodded. "Fair enough. Lead the way," he finished with a gesture.

The trio soon found themselves in an alleyway devoid of people, and the brothers told the foreigner their macabre tale. Of how they learned alchemy when they were barely out of their toddler years, of how their mother died and their father had walked out before that. How the two brothers studied under a strict teacher on the finer points of alchemy in an effort to bring their mother back. How that effort failed...and how they paid the price for their sins.

"I see, so you broke the Taboo," Naruto stated grimly as he looked at Al's hollow armor of a body and Ed's missing arm and leg. "I'm...sorry both for your loss and what you went through. And I completely understand why you want the Stone now."

"And why do you want it?" Al asked after a silence.

Naruto then proceeded to explain the situation with both Hinata and the current state of affairs in Xing. By the time he finished, the three lapsed into another silence. It was then Naruto had an idea and spoke up, "Hey, maybe we should team up?"

The brothers looked to him with questioning looks and he elaborated, "Well, we're all after the same goal, right? And chances are things are going to get more difficult the closer we get to finding the Stone, so instead of going for it separately, we team up to find it. With your knowledge and lay of the land, and my skill set, we should be able to get our hands on it no problem!"

"And what should we do when we do get the Stone?" Ed asked.

Naruto scratched his whiskered cheek for a second before snapping his fingers. "How's about this; the two of you use the Stone first to get your bodies back, and then you'll give it to me to take back to Xing and give to Hinata! It sounds like a win-win if you ask me."

The Elric brothers had another quick whispered conversation at that before turning back to the blond Xing native. Ed had a smirk on his face and Al, well, it _felt_ like he was smiling. "We accept!" they chorused.

"Great!" Naruto cheered with a clap of his hands. "I have the feeling this will be the start of a beautiful friendship!"

They got ready to depart the alleyway when Al asked a question that had been bugging him the last couple minutes. "Um, Mr. Uzumaki?" he asked hesitantly.

"Just call me Naruto, Al. After all, we're friends now, right?" Naruto chided.

"Ah! Sorry Naruto," Al apologized before continuing, "Anyway, I was wondering something. You seemed pretty calm when we showed you that I'm just a suit of armor with a soul attached to it. Most people act at least a bit shocked when they find out, and yet you…?" he trailed off.

Naruto laughed when he saw what the younger Elric was getting at and said, "You're wondering why I didn't freak out or something, huh?"

Al seemed to blush and Ed, while not saying anything seemed equally interested. At first, Naruto wondered if he should share his biggest secret with the boys, but then figured that he should. After all, the brothers showed a lot of trust in him by telling him their secret, and if anything they wouldn't judge him on it. Equivalent Exchange and all that.

"Well, you could say..." Naruto trailed off before shocking the brothers as his body began to contort and twist. The blonde's muscles seemed to become more pronounced yet remained lithe looking. His height shot up another half a foot, making him nearly seven feet tall, his clothes looking tight on his changing body. He kicked off his sandals as his feet became digitigraded, sharp ivory claws bursting from his fingers and toes. His spine then lengthened into a fluffy tail as fur the color of his hair covered his entire body. Finally, his face lengthened into a muzzle as his whisker marks became actual whiskers, his teeth becoming fangs, and his ears stretching up to the top of his head and gaining a foot in length.

The Fennec Fox chimera grinned toothily at the gobsmacked expressions Ed (and presumably Al) wore as he finished in a deeper voice, **"** **I have some experience with being 'different' myself."**

1\. I know Ed and Al seemed to have been a bit forthcoming with Naruto, but remember he did the same with Shou Tucker for information, and there was a chance Naruto knew something about the Stone that they did.


End file.
